$2.2B methanol complex in St. James Parish has new partner

A $2.2 billion methanol complex is moving forward in St. James Parish in a project that could create one of the world’s largest methanol production sites, officials said Friday.

Preliminary work on the project by South Louisiana Methanol began last year at a 1,500-acre site along the Mississippi River, eight miles south of the Sunshine Bridge. Louisiana Economic Development says the company could begin formal construction later this year if negotiations are successful with a new joint venture partner, a Houston-based subsidiary of Saudia Arabia-based SABIC.

The project, announced in 2013, initially was led by Texas-based ZEEP Inc. and New Zealand-based Todd Corporation. South Louisiana Methanol is now majority-owned by Todd Corporation and is working with SABIC on the complex.

The project would create 75 new direct jobs with annual average salaries of $71,500, plus benefits, and 350 new permanent indirect jobs. Around 800 construction jobs would be created at the peak of building, according to a news release from LED.

LED said it has renegotiated incentive terms with South Louisiana Methanol, which has not yet received incentives from the state. The company will be eligible for a $5 million performance-based grant, with $1.5 million payable upon the company making a minimum of $150 million in capital expenditures in the state. That portion of the performance-based grant would not be received prior to June 1. The remaining $3.5 million would be payable at the start of plant operations and no earlier than June 1, 2022. The company also is expected to use Louisiana’s Industrial Tax Exemption and Quality Jobs programs.